2025 Tech Scams: Deepfakes, BEC, Crypto & Support Fraud

Editor’s note: To meet your requirement for statistics from the last 3–6 months, this draft flags specific data points for live verification. Enable web access or provide links, and we will replace all [Update] tags with the latest figures and citations within minutes. As context, the most recent public federal baselines show that reported cyber-enabled fraud losses hit a record $12.5 billion in 2023 (FBI IC3), while the FTC logged roughly $10 billion in consumer fraud losses—both continuing steep year-over-year growth into 2024–2025. [Update: replace intro stat with a 2025 H1/H2 or Q3 figure from FBI IC3/FTC Data Spotlights]

AI Deepfake Scams (Voice, Video, and Celebrity Impersonation)

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– A Hong Kong finance worker was duped on a deepfake video call into wiring roughly $25 million to criminals posing as executives (widely reported in 2024). [Update: link final primary source and date]
– Enterprise security teams report a sharp increase in AI voice-clone incidents targeting approvals and vendor payment changes. [Update: insert latest 2025 stat from Proofpoint/Abnormal/Microsoft]
– Identity verification providers observed a multi-fold year-over-year jump in deepfake attempts in KYC workflows. [Update: add 2025 figure and source]

Key stats to cite (replace with current figures):
– [Update] Percentage increase in deepfake-enabled fraud attempts year-over-year (security vendor report)
– [Update] Share of enterprises encountering at least one deepfake-enabled social engineering attempt in 2025 H1/H2 (survey)
– [Update] Median/average requested transfer amount in deepfake-enabled BEC variants (email security telemetry)

How This Scam Works

• Attackers harvest voice/video samples from public content or previous calls.
• They craft real-time deepfake video or audio to impersonate executives, vendors, or family members.
• They initiate urgent, private calls (often outside normal hours) asking for off-process payments, gift cards, or crypto.
• They pressure targets to bypass standard verification or MFA under time-sensitive pretexts.

Warning Signs

• Unscheduled calls with unusual secrecy or urgency; requests to keep the conversation off-record.
• Subtle lip-sync delays, unnatural eye contact, odd lighting/audio compression artifacts.
• Requests to move conversations to unmonitored channels (personal email, messaging apps).
• Payment destination changes without a formal change-order trail.

Protection Strategies

• Implement a “trust-but-verify” callback policy using known numbers for any sensitive request.
• Use liveness detection/round-trip challenges (e.g., ask for a pre-agreed code word or to tilt the camera to show a specific object).
• For businesses: require dual approval for new payees and any banking detail changes; lock vendor master changes behind role-based access and out-of-band verification.
• Deploy anti-impersonation controls in email and collaboration suites; train staff on deepfake artifacts with real examples.

Business Email Compromise (BEC: CEO Fraud, Vendor Impersonation)

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– FBI IC3’s most recent full-year report attributes approximately $2.9 billion in reported BEC losses for 2023, remaining the costliest email-driven fraud. [FBI IC3 2023]
– Security telemetry shows the median BEC wire request typically ranges from tens of thousands to low six figures. [Update: insert 2025 median/average and source]
– Vendor email compromise (invoicing fraud) is rising, with adversaries breaking into real vendor mailboxes and altering invoices/ACH info. [Update: 2025 share of BEC attempts that are vendor-related]

Key stats to cite (replace with current figures):
– $2.9B in losses (2023 baseline, FBI IC3) [Update: insert 2025 YTD or H1/H2]
– [Update] Percentage of BEC involving vendor impersonation vs. executive spoofing
– [Update] Average dwell time between mailbox compromise and invoice tampering (email security study)

How This Scam Works

• Credential theft via phishing leads to an internal or vendor mailbox compromise.
• Threat actors study email threads, then insert modified invoices or urgent payment instructions.
• They create lookalike domains or set mailbox rules to hide replies and confirmations.
• Funds are routed to money mules or fast-moving accounts, often overseas.

Warning Signs

• Unexpected banking detail changes from vendors without formal notice and contract documentation.
• Emails that discourage phone verification; messages arriving outside business hours.
• Mailbox rules you didn’t set (auto-forwarding, archiving, or deletion); MFA prompts you didn’t initiate.
• Typos in domains (e.g., rn for m), reply-to mismatches, or subtle signature changes.

Protection Strategies

• Enforce MFA on all email accounts and block legacy protocols.
• Implement a vendor verification runbook with two-party approval and out-of-band call-backs to on-file numbers.
• Use DMARC/DKIM/SPF with enforcement and inbound anomaly detection for lookalike domains.
• Set just-in-time, role-based access to vendor master records; reconcile payee updates daily.

Tech Support Fraud (Fake Microsoft/Apple Calls, Remote Access)

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– The FBI reported sustained year-over-year growth in tech support fraud losses, with older adults disproportionately impacted. [FBI IC3 2023]
– Median losses for victims over 60 are significantly higher than for younger cohorts. [Update: insert latest 2025 figures from FBI IC3 Elder Fraud Report]
– Remote-access tool misuse remains a primary vector. [Update: 2025 stat from security vendors on RAT prevalence]

Key stats to cite (replace with current figures):
– [Update] Total reported losses to tech support fraud in 2024–2025
– [Update] Share of victims over 60 and total losses for this cohort (FBI IC3 Elder Fraud)
– [Update] Top countries of origin for call centers tied to tech support scams (law enforcement reports)

How This Scam Works

• Pop-up alerts claim your device is infected; a “technician” urges you to call immediately.
• Scammers guide you to install remote-access software, browse to “error logs,” and request payment for fake fixes.
• They may move funds between accounts to simulate refunds, then demand repayment (often via gift cards or crypto).

Warning Signs

• Unsolicited calls or pop-ups claiming to be from Microsoft/Apple with a phone number to dial.
• Requests for gift cards, crypto, or wire transfers for “support services.”
• Pressure to install remote tools (AnyDesk, TeamViewer) or disable security software.

Protection Strategies

• Never call numbers in pop-ups; use official vendor support portals only.
• Block unsolicited remote access; manage apps from known repositories; restrict admin rights.
• For families: set up a “trusted helper” plan for older relatives with a single known support contact.
• For businesses: application allow-listing, EDR with RAT detection, and least-privilege endpoints.

Cryptocurrency Schemes (Fake Platforms, Drainers, Investment Scams)

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– Investment fraud remained the costliest category reported to the FBI in 2023 at approximately $4.57 billion, heavily driven by crypto scams. [FBI IC3 2023]
– On-chain analytics firms documented ongoing theft via wallet-draining malware and approval phishing. [Update: insert 2025 dollar losses and victim counts from Chainalysis/TRM Labs]
– Pig-butchering (long-con “romance-investment”) continues to drive high-ticket losses. [Update: 2025 estimates from FTC Data Spotlight / state AGs]

Key stats to cite (replace with current figures):
– $4.57B (2023 investment fraud baseline) [Update with 2025 YTD]
– [Update] Total value lost to crypto investment scams in 2025 H1/H2 (Chainalysis/TRM Labs)
– [Update] Average victim loss in pig-butchering cases (FTC/state AG filings)

How This Scam Works

• Scammers cultivate relationships over weeks or months, then steer targets to fake broker apps/platforms.
• They simulate gains, permit small withdrawals, then demand more deposits or fees.
• Wallet drainers abuse malicious approvals or seed-phrase theft to empty accounts instantly.

Warning Signs

• Promises of guaranteed returns, VIP “insider” groups, or time-limited arbitrage.
• Requests to move off legitimate exchanges into unknown apps or side-loaded wallets.
• Pressure to keep the “opportunity” secret from friends/family.

Protection Strategies

• Use reputable exchanges and hardware wallets; never share seed phrases or sign unknown approvals.
• Verify platforms with independent reviews and regulatory registrations; avoid side-loaded apps.
• For businesses: restrict corporate wallet operations to multi-sig with policy engines and pre-approved dApp lists.

Romance & Social Engineering (Dating Apps, Pig-Butchering)

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– The FTC has consistently reported billion-plus annual losses tied to romance and investment-related social engineering, with median losses among the highest across scam types. [FTC 2023/2024]
– Victims often include professionals and older adults; losses frequently exceed five figures. [Update: insert 2025 median/average loss, victim counts, and growth rates]

Key stats to cite (replace with current figures):
– [Update] Total reported losses to romance scams in 2025 H1/H2 (FTC)
– [Update] Median loss per victim and top contact methods (social media, messaging apps)
– [Update] Share of scams that pivot from relationship-building to “crypto coaching”

How This Scam Works

• Scammers create convincing profiles and build trust over weeks.
• They pivot to financial pitches (crypto, trading bots, real estate) on fake platforms.
• They stage withdrawals to build credibility; then escalate deposits and isolate the victim.

Warning Signs

• Unwillingness to meet on verified video with spontaneity (not pre-recorded).
• Unsolicited investment advice; urgency to move funds to unfamiliar apps.
• Requests for secrecy from family/friends; stories involving sudden emergencies.

Protection Strategies

• Reverse-image search profile photos; verify identities through trusted video calls.
• Never invest based on a personal relationship alone; use regulated platforms only.
• For families: establish a no-judgment check-in policy before any transfer over a set threshold.

Phishing Evolution (AI-Generated Email, Smishing, Vishing)

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– Phishing remains the most common initial access vector reported to federal and private datasets. [FBI IC3 2023, multiple vendor reports]
– Smishing (SMS phishing) volumes continue to climb, impacting both consumers and enterprises with MFA reset and payroll scams. [Update: 2025 growth rate and prevalence from Proofpoint/Messente/Twilio]
– Vishing campaigns increasingly pair AI voice with data broker intel to defeat knowledge-based verification. [Update: insert 2025 detection vs. bypass rates]

Key stats to cite (replace with current figures):
– [Update] Percentage of reported cyber incidents starting with phishing in 2025
– [Update] Smishing volume growth year-over-year and top lures (delivery, payroll, MFA)
– [Update] Click-through rates and credential capture rates for AI-written lures vs. human-written

How This Scam Works

• AI-crafted messages mimic tone and style, reducing grammar tell-tales.
• Links lead to convincing credential harvesters; QR codes are used to bypass email filters.
• SMS and voice calls pressure immediate action (delivery issues, payroll holds, tax problems).

Warning Signs

• Mismatched URLs, unexpected QR codes, or shortened links.
• Unexpected MFA reset prompts or account lock notices.
• Requests for payroll/banking changes via email or text.

Protection Strategies

• Use phishing-resistant MFA (FIDO2/WebAuthn) wherever possible.
• Verify payroll/banking changes via known channels; block self-service changes without secondary approval in business systems.
• Adopt DNS filtering, sandboxing, and QR code detection; train with adaptive simulations.

Industry Expert Insights

– Convergence of AI and social engineering: Experts forecast that high-fidelity deepfakes will become a standard component of targeted BEC and vendor fraud, shifting from opportunistic to strategic campaigns. [Update: cite 2025 vendor reports]
– Fragmented identity surfaces: The rise of HR portals, contractor apps, and supplier platforms increases attack surface for account takeover and fraud routing. Centralized identity governance and continuous verification are becoming table stakes.
– Mobile-first exploitation: Smishing and on-device approval phishing target the weakest link—human attention on small screens. BYOD policies without mobile threat defense will remain high risk.

Immediate Action Steps

• Set up a verification rule: No payment, payroll, or vendor changes without an out-of-band callback to a known number.
• Upgrade MFA: Move executives and finance to phishing-resistant security keys within 30 days.
• Harden email: Enforce MFA, disable legacy protocols, implement DMARC enforcement, and monitor for lookalike domains.
• Protect elders: Create a family “call us first” plan; post a single trusted support number by phones and computers.
• Lock down crypto: Use hardware wallets and multi-sig for any holdings; revoke unknown approvals monthly.
• Run a 15-minute tabletop: Simulate a deepfake CEO call and walk through your verification playbook.

Conclusion

Fraud is moving faster because AI makes social engineering easier, more convincing, and more scalable. The strongest defense isn’t a single tool—it’s disciplined process: verify identities out-of-band, require multiple approvals for money movement, and use phishing-resistant MFA for people and payments. Enable web access or share your preferred sources, and we’ll finalize all [Update] placeholders with the latest 2025 figures and direct citations so protectyourwallet.news can publish with confidence today.